MILITARY NAVAL MARITIME GENERAL

• 352 p. : map, plan ; 24 cm. #170823
• First Edition. (No dustjacket, some foxing to prelims)
• 352 p. : map, plan ; 24 cm.

At the outbreak of hostilities on 3rd September 1939, Alfred Holt and Company was in a sound financial position, and its fleet comprised 76 Blue Funnel and 11 Glen Line ships. However, 28 of these ships had been built before or during the First World War, and the average age of the fleet was almost 20 years. “A Merchant Fleet in War 1939-1945” by Captain S W Roskill RN is a beautifully crafted and deeply moving account of the tragedies and triumphs experienced by the Holt fleet during the Second World War. Richard Holt died in March 1941, and Lawrence Holt became senior partner. Richard Durning Holt had been a Manager since 1895 and Senior Partner since 1904. He had, for over 40 years, been the dominant force in Alfred Holt and Company. On 3rd May 1941, India Buildings, and the Company records contained therein, were almost completely destroyed by fire caused by the bombing of adjacent buildings. In 1943, Alfred Holt and Company ceased to be responsible for managing Elder Dempster’s shipping operations. By the end of the Second World War, 41 Blue Funnel and 3 Glen Line ships had been lost. In addition, 8 of the ships that had been transferred by the Ministry of War Transport to Holts for manning and management were also lost. Fortunately, there was a relatively high rate of survival among the crews of Holt ships that were lost when compared to the British Merchant Navy as a whole, and there is no doubt that the high quality of construction of these ships and the professionalism of those who manned them were significant among the reasons for this.